When a consumer visits a physical location of a merchant, they often expect that the merchant will have the capacity to serve them quickly. However, many consumers know that there may be times where a merchant may be unusually busy or closed, and that the consumer may need to wait to be served or assisted. At these times, some consumers may elect to go elsewhere to find the products or services they desire, such as choosing a different place to eat if the restaurant they initially visit has a long wait.
However, some consumers may be unaware of other similar locations nearby, particularly if the busy merchant is a specialty merchant, or if the consumer is set on a specific merchant and would only be interested in other locations of the same merchant. In order to find other suitable places to go instead of the busy merchant, many consumers may turn to their smartphones. Application programs have been designed for smartphones and other mobile communication devices to provide for searching of merchants in specified geographic areas. However, often times these application programs do not provide sufficient detail of other locations, may not identify specific merchants that are associated with the busy merchant, and may be cumbersome, difficult, and time consuming for consumers to use.
Thus, there is a need for a technical solution to provide fast and efficient referrals to consumers at a merchant location to another location.